Review Blog

Aug 05 2015

Allen & Unwin, 2015. ISBN 9781760112790
(Age: 5-10) Warmly recommended. Collection, Short stories, poetry,
Music, Hospitals. The Hush Music Foundation aims to bring music into
children's hospitals, helping children cope with the stress of being
away from their families, in a strange place. Begun by Dr Catherine
Crock, she collected a number of musicians together to donate their
time and abilities to produce a series of CD's. These are now
augmented with a book of short stories and poems, written and
illustrative by well known Australian authors and illustrators.
Several of the stories include medical themes designed to make
children laugh. The elephant bird by Tohby Riddle makes its
appearance early on in the book, making the readers laugh out loud
at the strange story. After this is Alison Lester's remarkable Flying
home, which will carry a child back to his home before he goes
to sleep in hospital.The long shadow by Bob Graham evokes sympathy for a dog
nearing the end of its days, loved and protected by hits owner,
while My shadow by Karen Briggs and Paul Seden takes the
reader outside to playing with his shadow.
Several longer stories will pique the interest of older readers, Ghost
motel by Michael Camilleri and Jackie French and Grandma's
treasure by Victoria Rohan and Jane Tanner, while Shaun Tan's
enigmatic Ward will have children reading and rereading to
develop a sense of what it is about.
This collection with a music CD tucked into its back cover will help
children in hospital sit and read and be engrossed in a story or
poem, music or illustration, allowing their minds to seek another
place during their stay.
I loved Nothing to be scared of by Doug Macleod and Craig
Smith, reading it as possums scampered across my roof, and the last
offering in the bookFree to fly by Bruce Whatley, evoking the
peace and freedom of being outside. Each offering in this book
presents another place where children would like to be if only for a
little while, away from where they must be for the time being.
Fran Knight